Swivel hanger for cow stall stanchions and the like



R. G. FERRIS Dec. 1, 1953 SWIVEL HANGER FOR COW STALL STANCHIONS AND THE LIKE Filed July 13, 1948 PIP Patented Dec. 1, 1953 UNITED STATES RATENT OFFICE SWIVEL HANGER FOR COW STALL STANCHIONS AND THE LIKE Robert Gaye Ferris, Harvard, 111., assignor to Starline 1110., Harvard, 111., a corporation of Illinois 4 Claims. 1

More particularly the invention relates to a swivel hanger that is self-lubricated over a long period of time, the general object of the invention being to provide a new and improved hanger of this type in which wear and noise are minimized.

Another object is to provide a swivel hanger for cow stall stanchions and the like including a pad of felt or other material soaked with a lubricant and operable to keep the bearing parts lubricated for a substantial period of time.

Another object is to provide such a swivel hanger comprising a cup-shaped member adapted to be secured to the stall structure and a swivel member adapted to be secured to the upper end of a stanchion together with bearing parts carried by said members and forming a ball and socket type of joint, and a pad of felt located in the cup-shaped member and above the bearing parts and operable to lubricate the parts and to maintain them in assembled relation.

Other objects will become readily apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational View of a preferred form of the invention shown in an installed position on a horizontal pipe forming a portion of a cow stall.

Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal section therethrough.

Fig. 3 is an end view thereof.

Fig. 4 is a transverse section along line 44 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary section along the line 5-5 of Fig. 1.

While I have shown in the drawings and will hereinafter describe in detail a preferred embodiment of the invention it is to be understood that various modifications may occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope or" the appended claims.

As shown in the drawings, the invention comprises a hanger member if! having a somewhat square cup-shaped portion H and a pair of laterally extending attaching lugs 2. The lateral walls I la of the cup shaped portion of the hanger member have their upper margins l lb positioned considerably below the attaching lugs i2, leaving a deep, generally U-shaped opening in each of the lateral walls Ma. The hanger is generally supported on a horizontally extending pipe !3 of a cow stall which has a V-shaped bottom portion and for this reason the lugs l2 are also V-shaped as shown in Fig. 3. Bolts l4 secure the hanger member to the pipe. When the hanger member 10 is secured to the pipe, the U-shaped opening He in the lateral walls Ila leave a substantial space between the stall frame pipe I3 and said lateral walls so that all the wearing parts of the swivel hanger assembly may be inserted or removed without removing the hanger member it from the pipe IS. The cup-shaped portion H has a slot [5 in the bottom thereof. A pair of bearing members 5, also of substantially square outline, fit in the cup-shaped portion l I and normally rest in the bottom thereof. Centrally the bearing members have spherically surfaced concave depressions It forming bearing surfaces. The bearing members have depending portions ll extending into the ends of the slot it so as to fill those portions of the slot and leave only a round central opening after the bearing members are positioned in the hanger member.

A swivel head It has a spherically surfaced upper or ball end l9 which cooperates with the bearing members It to form a ball type swivel joint and has an attaching portion 26 adapted to be secured to a stanchion or the like. A cylindrical neck 2! joins the two ends of the swivel head and passes through the round opening left by the bearing members, the neck being sufficiently long to permit the swivel head to move upwardly a short distance from the position in which the surfaces of the bearing parts are in engagement. The top surface of the ball end 19 is non-spherical and preferably is flat and approximately on a level with the upper margins of the bearing members it and the lateral edges of the cup-shaped portion I i of the hanger members. 1

This permits a felt pad 22 to be inserted in the cup portion of the hanger member above the bearing parts It and 19 after the assembly is bolted to the horizontal pipe 13. This pad substantially fills the space between the bearing parts and the pipe l3 and is preferably filled or impregnated with a lubricant, as for example an ounce or so of machine oil. This lubricant is preferably applied before the device leaves the factory and in a normal operation, may be suiii cient to last a year or more. The lubricant can readily be replaced at the installation.

In the invention as herein disclosed, the hanger member it! may be of pressed steel, the bearing members [6 are of annealed gray iron and the swivel head I8 is a steel forging. The slot 55 in the bottom of the hanger member is sufiiciently long to permit the lower or attaching end of the swivel head to be inserted therethrough after which the bearing members I6 are inserted under the ball end of the swivel head with the depending portions I! located at the ends of the slot 55. After this assembly is bolted to the horizontal pipe 13 of a stall arch the felt pad 22 is inserted and the lubricant applied.

When in use, the swivel head and the stanchion carried thereby generally swing from side to side and frequently are raised upwardly when the cow raises its head. These movement's cause the felt pad 22 to be compressed and to discharge oil on to the bearing parts. In addition, the feltpad provides a yieldable element which serves to hold the parts in assembled relation when they are moved about due to the action of the stanchioned animal. Thus the wear on the parts is'iediiced and the noise normally created by unlubricated parts is minimized, the swivel head remaining silent for a long period of time.

The wearing parts of the entire assembly are the bearing members $5, the swivel head I8, and the felt pad Since the felt pad 22 may be inserted and I "noted after the assembly is bolted to the pipe it permits the wearing parts to be removed and replaced without unbolting the hanger member if! from the pipe 13.

I claim:

1. A cow stall stanchion swivel hanger cornpris'ing: a cup-shaped hanger member having upstanding end walls adapted to be attached to the under side of a cow stall frame member, and having side walls of less height than said end walls, said member having a slotted bottom; a pair of loose bearing members resting on the bottom of said hanger member and having portions projecting into said slot to provide an aperture, said bearing members forming an upwardly concave bearing surface, the top margin of which is substantially alined with the top edge of said side walls; a swivel head having a generally hemispherical bearing portion supported in said bearing members and a neck extending through said aperture to afford an attaching element beneath the hanger member, the fiat top of said hemispherical bearing portion being substantially alined with the top edges of said side walls and said bearing members; and a resilient, compressible, lubricant impregnated pad filling the space between said alined members and the cow stall frame member so as to yieldably urge the bearing members and swivel head toward the bottom of the hange' member and lubricate the bearing surfaces.

2. In cow stall stanchion, a swivel hanger comprising: a cup shaped fixed hanger member having upstanding end walls attached to a fixed cow stall frame member and having side Walls of less height than said end walls to leave a space between each side wall and the stall frame member; a pair of loose bearing members resting on the bottom of said hanger member to afford an upwardly concave bearing surface; a swivel head having a bottom bearing surface complementary to and resting loosely in surface abutting relationship with the aforesaid bearing surface and a non-spherical top fac'e, said swivel head having an attaching element which is accessible from outside the hanger member andfa resilient, compressible lubricant-impregnated pad substantially filling the space between the top face of the swivel head and the stall frame member to yieldably maintain the swivel head on the bearing surface aiforded by said bearing members and prevent the parts from rattling when the swivel head is moved by movement of a cow in the stanchion, said pad, said swivel head, and said bearing members all being so proportioned as to be removable through one of the spaces between the side wall and the stanchion member.

3. In a cow stall, a stanchion swivel hanger comprisin a generally rectangular cup-shaped fixed hanger member supported on a cow stall frame member, said hanger member having a lateral Wall which has its upper edge spaced from the frame member to afford an opening between the hanger member and the frame member, and having an elongated slot in its bottom; a pair of loose bearing members resting on the bottom of said hanger member to afford an upwardly concave bearing surface, said bearing members having depending portions extending into said slot with a central opening therebetween; a swivel head having a bottom bearing surface complementary to the aforesaid bearing surface, said swivel head having a neck portion extending through said central opening with an attaching element at its lower end; and a retaining pad of resilient, compressible material filling the space between the swivel head and a portion of one of said members to yieldably maintain the swivel head on said bearing surface.

i. In a cow stall, a stanchion swivel hanger comprising: a cup-shaped hanger member supported on a cow stall frame member, said hanger member having a lateral wall which has its upper edge spaced from the frame member to afford an opening between the hanger member and the frame member, and having a slot in its bottom; a pair of loose bearing members resting on the bottom of said hanger member to afford an upwardly concave bearing surface, said bearing members having depending portions extending into said slot with a central opening therebetween; a swivel head having a bottom bearing surface complementary to the aforesaid bearing surface, said swivel head having a neck portion extending through said central opening with an attaching element at its lower end; and a retaining pad of resilient, compressible material filling the space between the swivel head and a portion of one of said fixed members to yieldably maintain the swivel head on said bearing surface.

ROBERT GAYE FERRIS.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

